AN-94
The AN-94 is a Russian Assault Rifle in Phantom Forces, unlocked at level 10. The AN-94 was first developed in 1994 to fulfill the need to penetrate body armor. This resulted in the AN-94 having a 'hyper-burst' mode, which it fired 2 rounds at 1,800 RPM, faster than most machine guns. Due to the mechanism required, the AN-94 has a reciprocating barrel, as well as a pulley system used for the 1,800 RPM. When fielded however, it required several months to train the average Russian soldier to use this weapon properly. Thus, it was only fielded to Russia's most elite forces. The AN-94 in-game has very desirable traits, including its rapid burst mode. When in burst mode, the first shot produces no recoil, but the second shot produces double the normal recoil, meaning a grip and/or muzzle brake is recommended to stay on target if you are to spam this gun beyond the recommended burst cap. Compared to DMR's The AN-94's highly accurate burst mode will lead to comparisons to guns of similar killing potential, like the Dragunov SVU and SCAR SSR. While the AN-94 cannot one-burst (highest damage a burst can do is 89.6 damage, up close and headshot), it shares a similar non-multipler burst damage profile as the SVU and SSR (64-48 compared to 60-50 and 57-48 respectively). That, and the gun has 15 bursts per magazine, as opposed to 10 shots per mag with the SVU and SSR. The unlock for this gun is much, MUCH lower than the SVU and SSR, at rank 10 as opposed to rank 39 and rank 85 respectively. Unlike the SVU, which 2-hits anywhere at all ranges and the SSR, where torso shots do practically just as much damage as a headshot, the AN-94 is reliant on headshots at long range. Fortunately, the AN-94 can score a burst headshot at long range, then you can simply aim another burst anywhere to finish the opponent off. In terms of bullet drop, the AN-94 performs identically to the SVU, but inferior to the SCAR SSR. In short, the AN-94 is effectively a burst-fire DMR that can match, and sometimes even outperform, slower firing 2-hit DMR's. Effective Range The AN-94 is desirable for those who want to deal with targets from far away. The following are approximations for the effective ranges with the AN-94, one with normal irons, the other with the VCOG scope, along with the hits to kill at what ranges. * 4-hit range: 0-113 studs * 5-hit range: 114 studs-∞ * Burst, iron sights: 600 studs * Auto, iron sights: 350 studs * Burst, VCOG: 850 studs * Auto, VCOG: 275 studs Strategies Offensive * The AN-94 features a two-round burst that has no recoil for the first shot; this means that your shots will land in the exact same position in most circumstances. ** This, along with the AN-94's damage model, makes it vital to aim for the head on your targets. * You should set your AN-94 to be geared more towards long-range engagements, taking advantage of its low recoil at range. ** The AN-94 still has killing capacity in CQC due to its high RoF; however, this is not as effective versus using it as a ranged weapon due to being hindered to either A) a high RoF but burst fire, or B) automatic fire but a low RoF. * Keep in mind you're using a burst-fire weapon versus a fully automatic gun. You cannot hold down the LMB in CQC, but instead must remember to repeatedly click your mouse to be able to make the most out of the AN-94's 1800 RPM. ** Beware of "jamming" your gun, or clicking while the AN-94 is still firing a burst. This is highly unlikely due to having such a high RoF, but can still happen in frantic situations. * Be sure to equip a VCOG 6x on the AN-94 whenever you can, and aim for the head. It will outpace some DMRs at long range. ** You only need one burst to hit the head for the next burst to guarantee a kill. This is useful when frantically tracking a target after you pulled off a headshot, or if you made a headshot but you're out of breath. * When using full auto, be sure to burst in 4 rounds, to get the initial burst, then fire two more bullets. This will help you in engagements with multiple enemies, where you are worried about killing the second guy slower than you killed the first guy. * This gun handles a lot like the Pytaek from Advanced Warfare when in full auto; first few shots kick a lot, then the kick is very negligable afterwards. Defensive * The AN-94 has few chinks in the armor; however, try to stay away from ranged engagements as best as you can. * Get up close and personal with the user, and bring an automatic weapon along with you. ** Emphasize on the point that the AN-94 has a great burst fire but crummy automatic fire, and you will likely win the CQC firefight. * If the user doesn't have a VCOG, picking him/her off with a Sniper Rifle is a viable option; the Dragunov SVU can take care of them without too much pain. * Get an optic as soon as possible; the irons are atrocious. Recommended Loadout FactionGuerrilla Spetsnaz Issued (This Loadout is best used at medium to long ranges. The PK-A makes it unsuitable for compensating bullet drop but is clear enough to keep the AN-94 competitive in CQC.) * Optic: PK-A- Um, did you think I'd add an ACOG scope? No; this is a Russian loadout, and Russians wouldn't have ACOG scopes for use, so I use the PK-A instead. This limits it somewhat to CQC to mid-range combat, but it still ''is possible to compensate for bullet drop; just that you'll have to eyeball the bullet drop.'' * Barrel: Flash Hider- If the recoil affects you ''that ''much you're doing something wrong; the Flash Hider keeps you unseen(ish) while retaining regular aspects. * Underbarrel: Vertical Grip- The Vertical Grip makes the AN-94's spread tighter in hipfire, and will hasten the time it takes for the scope to go back down to its original spot. This makes it useful when using it as a true "rifle". * Other: Laser- Lasers, Lasers, and more Lasers. I can't tell you how useful the Lasers are in CQC, because they usually will be a good indication of where the bullets will fly; therefore I prefer them over Canted Sights. Widowmaker (What's this? A "Widowmaker"? This loadout is essentially based off of Overwatch's Widowmaker character, who wields a sniper rifle that can turn into an Assault Rifle. This loadout is made for versatility- burst ADSing for the longer ranges whilst switching to automatic hipfire for those tight close battles.) * Optic: VCOG 6x- Aim, aim, and aim again. At range, this optic is extremely handy for picking off those cursed "bush wookies" hiding out on the crane or waaay out back on Highway Lot. Go for the head, and make sure they're punished for not realizing the true potential for the AN-94. * Barrel: Flash Hider- I usually like to take the opportunity to slap on a Flash Hider if I think that nothing else helps. To me, the Flash Hider is neat in those dark spots (looking at you, Highway Lot) so that you don't scream out that you're sitting right there shooting at your target. This gives the AN-94 more use in dark spots, and to me that benefit outweighs the negative traits that the Hider comes with. * Underbarrel: Vertical Grip- When using this as an "Assault Rifle"- AKA switching to automatic fire and hipfiring- I prefer keeping my spread tight, thank you so much. Another plus is that the recoil when bursting comes down slightly more quickly, noticable when in those "Oh $#!+" moments while you're spamming at some M60 scrub from afar trying to spray and pray at you. Just be wary of the "rougher handling" reducing your ADS speed. * Other: Laser- If you wish to, you can swap the Vertical Grip for an Underbarrel Laser so you can use a Ballistics Tracker, but otherwise I forgo the Tracker, because all that's good for is long-range sniping and/or seeing scrubs in the dark Highway hallway in KoTH. You can also use a Canted sight if you really wanted to be versatile, but if you're simply hipfiring your AN-94 like me, the Laser gives you a pinpoint shot at where your bullets will land. '' CamaroKidBB ''Hybrid Loadout * Optic: VCOG 6x- This is to make the best of the AN-94's ability to kill at long ranges. Just aim for the head, and shoot twice. * Barrel: Flash Hider- It helps to hide the flash so targets won't notice you as easily as they could when they could see the bright light going over that building, signifying one's appearance. * Underbarrel: None- With how sparingly you should use the trigger, at 240 clicks per minute for a total of 480 RPM, there is no real need for an underbarrel attachment. * Other: Delta Sight- For close-medium range encounters where a VCOG would be too much, and full auto would be more than sufficient than the burst mode. Black Ops Loadout * Optic: Reflex Sight- Unlike the above loadout, this loadout takes advantage of the full auto mode of the AN-94 without using burst. That being said, the irons just won't do it for CQC, so Reflex it is. * Barrel: Suppressor- Thanks to the recent suppressor update, this suppressor is capable of suppressing 15 studs and beyond, and no longer makes the AN-94 a 6-hit kill at range. This means the AN-94 is the only Assault Rifle capable of 5-hit killing with this suppressor that also isn't limited to burst, or has an unnecessarily long reload time. * Underbarrel: None- While the kick is very sharp, it literally drops off to almost zero recoil after 4 shots. I'm not kidding when I say it's effective out to 300+ studs in full auto alone. * Other: None- No need for 'other' attachments, because clutter. This time, canted/laser sights because it's already CQC oriented, and Ballistics Tracker because it isn't needed for the ranges this loadout will be used in, but if you want to use it, go ahead. In Conclusion The AN-94 is a jack of all trades, master of none type of rifle. However, at long range, it has the best full auto accuracy in the game, following the very sharp recoil from the burst to the 5th round fired in the burst. It's good in CQB should your first shot accuracy be excellent, and an excellent DMR at long range, but the TTK for auto is sluggish following the burst and will lend you to getting sniped, and use as a DMR isn't the highest damaging DMR in the world, nor is it the most consistent (it's burst, not semi after all), nor could it even one-burst. However, this Assault Rifle is perfect if you just want a rifle to suit both roles, rather than choosing one or the other. Trivia * The AN-94 is the only Assault Rifle as of now to have a fire rate increase from automatic to burst. * Counting the hyper-bursts as one bullet, the AN-94 is the highest damaging Assault Rifle. ** The AN-94 has higher burst damage in CQB than the SVU's bullet damage. * One of the longest shots in the game, at 1,142 studs, was performed by CamaroKidBB, with an AN-94 with a VCOG, Muzzle Brake, and Vertical Grip. ** There was another shot beyond 1,000 studs performed with the same loadout by CamaroKidBB, except it was 1,136 studs away, and was a headshot. * Following the sharp vertical kick from the first four rounds, the AN-94 has the longest effective range of any fully automatic weapon. * It is the only weapon to have a dual full auto fire rate; firing the first two rounds of a burst at 1,800 RPM, then dropping off to 600 RPM continuous full auto fire.